A Game of Kings -SYOC-
by chronoman
Summary: Argent Academy is home to the King's Cup, a competition between the six various dorms. Every year the dorms put forth a team of six students for pride and glory. For the past several years only one dorm has claimed victory: ThunderPlague. The reign over the school has been an iron grip. With the new year approaching there is a spark of hope for a new winner. -SYOC-Closed
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: Well hello there, we're trying an SYOC, I mainly write crap for RWBY so I'm branching out. This story idea is not new by any stretch of the imagination, I actually took this base idea from a good old friend of mine. If you know the original story that I'm talking about, you've been here for at least for...almost a decade. Jeez the time came and went. This will be a bit of an info dump, prepare for that.**

**-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-**

Prologue

A king is supposed to be a figurehead for their people, the shining beacon, to be the face when things go wrong or right, to be strong when others are weak, to be perseverant when others give up. A king is to be smart, to know what is best for his people even when they might disagree, to not be afraid of their revolt or when they question his authority. A king is to be ruthless in battle, to never back down from the enemy, to meet them head on with the support of his followers. The king is supposed to be intelligent, cunning, strategic, brutally honest about the odds, their orders are absolute. The power of the king should always be feared, respected, awed at from his lower subjects.

A queen, a king's other half, is usually seen as a serene and calm woman, but that can be anything but. Sometimes with more fury and rage than beauty than grace, the queen can call upon the king to remove an enemy, change his ways, and even can run a kingdom. Almost like in chess the queen is the most powerful able to move great distances that many other pieces cannot. The strength of a queen is unparalleled to any other, perhaps even the king in some regard. While mentioned earlier, the beauty of the queen is sometimes the most shining thing about them, it's what gives them their edge and hides that possible fury none would be suspecting.

The infiltrator is a side of the coin that is as much a danger to yourself as it is others. Quick, precise, proficient, the infiltrator can get in, get out without a moment's notice. At least that is the old school way of infiltration from more barbaric years. In today's world the infiltrator has evolved the most among its counterparts. There is the archaic method of getting into the enemy compound. Or you could befriend the enemy and make your way into the hearts of your enemy, and then break them when you have what you wanted. In this day and age though infiltration can be done across long distances, from behind the safe haven of a screen. However the means, whether fast or slow, in person or not, infiltration is important to the king and queen's strategy, to learn new, damaging information.

The defender, the other side of the coin, a strong shield to defend not only the king but also the queen. The defender stands a symbol for the people of the kingdom, that they will not be harmed by other kingdoms. Like the knights and guards on the walls, the people can see a smiling face for them to get behind. Unlike the king or the queen, the people will see the defender every day, see their efforts, and become closer with them than any other figure. Their strength comes from endurance, from many different attacks, but what defense is a mystery. Is it taking hit after hit, destroying your enemies before they destroy you, or keeping your friends out of harm's way? The many facets of the defender are left to the defender themselves, they are often left to themselves unlike the infiltrator who gets direct orders from the royalty.

The pawn, another chess metaphor, often seen as the weakest of the chess pieces, a throw away piece. However, a skilled player will know that pawns are instrumental for the long term health and strategy of your board and pieces. When used to its fullest potential the ability of the pawn increases tenfold. These powers are a mystery to most, and the smart king and the smart pawn knows never to reveal them.

The joker, a playing card, a reference to the jesters in the days of actual kings and actual knights. These were the only ones allowed to ridicule the king, to make jokes of the king's way, policy, and swordsmanship. An utter wild card in nature. In today's card games, the joker is sometimes thrown out, or it is kept in, but they're always included in a fresh deck. They can represent other cards sometimes, can spell doom in some, or mean certain victory in others. However the joker is seldom ever thought about to the general public, it's almost as if they do not exist. How hilarious when the enemy finds out that the joker is in play, the inclusion of them in the deck can ruin the probability, can ruin the chances, can flip the game on its pretty little head.

**-X-**

The infamous Argent Academy, on an island in the middle of nowhere, the closest town or region is almost three days by boat. The weather causes flying to be an absolute pain Thus it has become a small city of its own, the families of the faculty are housed there, high schoolers are required to live in one of the six dorms on campus. The housing for the students exist on the far reaches of the campus, all at equal distances but in a variety of environments. The location of the island has led to a mixture of environments from frozen caves in the south end of the island, a blistering savanna in the north, in the west is a forest that as you went north became progressively muggier; but if you went south became more of a winter forest with snow and ice marring the trees, and in the east were rocky hills and valley that ad you went north became a sandy lifeless desert; and if you went south became snow capped mountains. The various dorms of this school are placed in these varying environments, they lay deep within and hidden from outsiders.

The dorms are separated by the individual Pokémon each student brings, this is a Pokémon school after all. The dorm of Fire, Grass, and Normal types; LifeCylce, is located in the heart of the savanna to the north where the heat is year round where maybe the lowest they get is a measly sixty five on the old Fahrenheit scale. All the various types at this dorm get to grow in the heat and play in their preferred climate The dorm in the exact opposite direction in the very far southern ice caps is WinterNights, comprising of Ice, Dark, and Fairy Pokémon. The snow never stops, and the ice becomes merely a mild inconvenience to coming and going. At night it becomes pitch black and the only hope of finding the dorm is that you have a partner who can see in the dark. To the northwest, where the savanna and the valley meet becomes a desert, but as you go farther up towards the coast this mixture becomes a pleasant, white sandy beach where the dorm of Flying, Water, and Psychic type Pokémon live; WaterNebula. The climate is good for the Water types, the constant winds is excellent for the Flying types, and calmness is perfect for the Psychic types. In the far off rocky caverns filled with treacherous valley and horrific crevasses lies the dorm of ExoStone, home of the Steel, Bug, and Ground types. The dorm stands in front of the massive mouth of a cave that goes below several hundred feet where the darkness swallows all. However that area is supposed to be off limits to nearly every student except upperclassman of the ExoStone dorm, not even the freshman and sophomore students are allowed in there. Farther off into the southern mix between the mountains and frozen hillsides lies the dorm of DracoCrater of the Dragon, Fighting, and Rock type Pokémon. The dorm is situated on one of the highest peaks, Mt. Granite, where a cable car is required to get to every day, it should be noted that the students of this dorm are giving an extra buffer of time before being counted as late or tardy. The final dorm, off in the farthest hospitable zone of the jungle in the east, much of it has not been traversed due to the thickness and treacherous bogs that lie within, ThunderPlague of the Electric, Poison, and Ghost type users. Rumor has it that the souls of the unlucky workers of the dorm who went missing in the jungle fuel the spirits of the ghosts the trainers use. Superstitious nonsense, little more than folklore tales told to the freshman never to go near that dorm.

Argent Academy is home to game of sorts, known as the King's Cup. A school wide competition spanning the time of the entire year. In it, the students of each dorm put forth a team of six players to gather points for the dorms, each of these players has a different role and nearly all of them are voted upon the students for a multitude of criteria not limited to battling expertise.

The first is the Pawn, versatile in nature, this piece is picked from the incoming freshman and is seen as the strongest among them. During the admission process there is a battling piece where students can see how they rank. The choice is made by a multitude of incoming students, faculty, and current students who watch the battling process. It is a very common misconception that the Pawn is the weakest, a belief that can sometimes lead enemies in a false sense of security. More on that when the rules of the game are more clearly defined.

The next role is the Defender, can be of any grade minus freshman, this piece is from a selection of who have a minimum of a 3.75 grade point average and is then voted by the students. The list is presented by the teachers and the students vote on them, so the degree to which the student has a say is up for debate. However it should be known that there is usually very little to question about the teacher's choices. This role often acts as a liaison between the other five roles and the majority of the dorm's regular student body.

The Infiltrator is role usually put aside for the delinquents of the dorm, like their Defender counterparts they must of sophomore standing or above, and is usually associated with some form of athleticism or has a hand in one of the many clubs or special interest groups around the school. However, years ago, as a way to get the worst trouble maker out of their hair the student body would elect a student who was notorious for getting into trouble. Rather than they themselves deal with it, students say it as a way to not have to deal with the troubling students of the school. The tradition reached its way around campus, although we sometimes are greeted with a surprise of the original sense

The first of the royalty positions is the Queen, an all female role generally chosen for the student who is the most beautiful. This student must be a third year, and can only be a third year, no other role requires a certain gender and certain year. This female must be able to defend herself and be able attack when necessary, but never to be taken down. While the Defender is the soul of the people, the Queen is the heart and sometimes a more prominent face than any other role.

The second of the royalty roles is the King, by far the most important. The King is exclusively chosen among, and by the fourth year students of the dorm. A leader is chosen among them, generally a returning player in the King's Cup but not always the case. The King, while depicted as a male, can also be female. The amount of male Kings and female Kings has always been pretty even, however female Kings have had the majority of wins in a ratio of 55:45. Aside from the administrative rules, the King is the best battler of the dorm, qualities of a real leader, the skills of a strategic. Unlike any other of the pieces, King's cannot be challenged directly from the start of the game, all other roles must be defeated before doing so. While that sounds easy, it is anything but. The best students fill the various roles, because if the King is defeated in battle, then the dorm is eliminated from the competition.

However there is a last piece that is not officially a part of the game. Long ago, when the game was first introduced there was originally a Tactician role, but that fell into obscurity due to the requirements of the King role it felt redundant. So the role was officially retired, and no one really misses it. However, decided by the faculty, the teams were given a reserve member should something drastic happen to the other roles. This role has been dubbed by the student body as the Joker, being able to take the place of any aforementioned role regardless of school year or, in the case of the Queen, gender. This is the only position not chosen by the student body but by the King, appointed before the start of the year.

**-X-**

Throughout the storied tales of Argent Academy's King's Cup, none have been so recent as ThunderPlague's recent string of victories. There have been tales as some dorms winning at most three years in a row, however ThunderPlague has won a staggering nine years straight going on for the unprecedented decade. As to how they've done it there are a myriad of theories, ranging from sound logic to the downright insane. Most suggest it is how they plan their strategies; their Kings have been some of the best along with their support players. Another theory is that because of the difficulty of reaching the ThunderPlague dorm, it has made it difficult for Infiltrators to gather information on them. Still to this day no one knows the way to ThuunderPlague except its students, some other have argued that the path to the dorm shifts with the bog's shifting pathways as the water rises and lowers. More radical students believe they made a deal with the supposed spirits of the forest for their win, so long as the outgoing spirits trade in their souls. Again, superstitious nonsense. If you wish to defeat ThunderPlague you are going to need to know a few things. Before we leave you to strategize.

Their incoming Pawn is a girl by the name of Saki Suzuki. As being the Pawn of ThunderPlague she is a freshman. Voted as the strongest one among the incoming dorm's freshman body, she has shown to be a competent battler and thinker. However outside she has shown a bit of nervousness and unease at her new title, although this might just be due to the sudden spotlight. Her partner, a stalwart Dusclops, practically contrasting her demeanor, that helped lead her to victory. Not much else is really known about her due to her being a first year student.

The returning Infiltrator is man that goes by Dustin Nelson, a junior, his legacy came from when he got caught in his freshman year for mixing laxatives into the three of the punch bowls at the prom. What got him in more trouble was that he then took those punch bowls over to where some of the other dorms were hanging out while keeping the safe ones for ThunderPlague's. Not only did it paint a target on his back for next year by nearly the entire student body, it also gained him notoriety among his own dorm. Together with his partner Nidorino, he has quickly made his way through the ranks of strong trainers that reside in the ThunderPlague without the need of the final evolution. Since that fateful night he has maintained his reputation as a saboteur and has no issue hitting below the belt in battle, Pokemon or otherwise.

Their Defender is a new candidate, a second year known as Cortez, although his full name is Julio Cortez. His records boast an impressive cumulative grade point average at a 3.95 of some of the most difficult classes taught here at Argent Academy. No records of misdoing, has no unexcused absences, has even lead classes on occasion. Virtually outside of that he has remained an enigma to everyone outside of ThunderPlague including the administration. When we asked why the students voted for him, it was revealed that him and his partner Lanturn assist in touring the boggy maze of a swamp with fellow students. He also assists in helping students both younger and older than him in their homework. Loved among the staff and students both, he is a true Defender and will be one of your tougher opponents

The Queen of ThunderPlague is a lady of tremendous beauty, she was a Pawn for ThunderPlague two years ago but was not a member of the winning team her second year of school. Even throughout the rest of the school she is known for her beauty, a trait that all Queen's share. Ashlyn is her name, Ashlyn Blackburn. It's almost eerily funny how her maiden name fits her so well. Her most striking feature is her long, flowing, ebony hair that could blend in with the night sky, the stars above jealous of her eyes and the beauty they behold. Her skill in battle is something to be frightened of as well, she is not just a pretty face but a masterful combatant. Her tactics speak for themselves as she has gotten into this particular position. Her name of Blackburn is also amusing when you take into consideration her partner Pokemon, Salazzle. A fitting partner for an all female title, almost cliche. A word of warning though, every rose has its thorns, and some are much more venomous and well hidden than others.

The King of ThunderPlague, Marie Royal, is a veteran of the King's Cup. Originally a pawn and then a Defender for two years straight she has been an instrumental piece in the dorm's winning teams for the previous three years. There is no questioning her leadership, her promotion was a forgone conclusion, to the dismay of the other dorms. There is no doubt among the enemies of ThunderPlague that Marie is the most feared woman on the campus, the only people even capable of standing up to her are perhaps the other Kings. Even though she wasn't a Queen, her beauty could rival Ashlyn's albeit Marie is more known for her lavish blonde hair. A masterful tactician, a masterful battler, her Electivire has not lost a match since the end of her second year. Even if you get through the other varied and strong members of ThunderPlague, you then have to beat perhaps someone as strong as them combined. Pray to whatever gods you believe in that if you are going to lose, it will be quick and painless.

**-X-**

With the players lined up, it probably be beneficial to describe some of the basic rules of the King's Cup. As mentioned before the competition is point based and takes over the course of the entire year. Defeating certain roles gets you a certain amount of points; Pawns are 1 point, Defenders and Infiltrators are 3 points, Queens are 7 points, and Kings are worth 15 points. Keep in mind that once a King is defeated the entire dorm is removed from the competition. However to prevent a sudden challenge of the King there are multiple obstacles and deterrents from doing so. The first is that in order to challenge the King you first must beat all other team members of the dorm before doing so. There is no particular order to which they need to be beaten, that would be utter madness if it was a specified order. Once a player is beaten they are forced to sit out of the game for a certain period of time. Pawns are three days, Defenders are five days, Infiltrators are a week, Queens are three weeks. During several points throughout the year there will be events held that go around these rules such as tournaments, battle royales, the Infiltrators hold a special event, and more. These events can be done whether or not a player is eligible and after these events the board is reset so to speak and all players will be eligible after that. When the second semester comes around any progress made on a dorms in terms of conquering the king is reset so you must start back at the Pawns. This is to discourage a long drawn out battle and force some excitement. In order to challenge, there must be consent between the two parties, a faculty member present, and a witness for both sides. This is done to discourage any shady methods that might come about.

Each of the different players have some sort of power they can exercise. For example the Infiltrator is allowed to go around the normal rule of needing to get permission to challenge another player. They can do this once per month, but otherwise need permission from the King. Defenders are allowed to intercept a challenge so long as they have the consent of the originally challenged player, this rule does not explicitly limit to your own dorm. To mimic their abundance in the game of chess, a Pawn can battle after losing within the three days but if they lose again the points gained from winning against that Pawn is tripled. With Queens the player can call for two players to battle, one must be from their own dorm naturally. This can only be done once every two months and she must have consent from the opposing player's King and her own King but not necessarily the players in question. The King is allowed to challenge any piece and they cannot refuse, minus the King unless the previously mentioned requirement is met. However there are massive drawbacks, should the King lose their match not only will the opposing team gain the 15 points for beating the king, but their own dorm will lose 15 points and will be unable to challenge any dorm for a period of one month. Should the king lose the dorm is not eliminated, they are rather reduced to a sitting duck. This power while strong is very dangerous and is only usable once per semester. It is to be used as a tactician's trump card and only as such.

Now go, use this knowledge to plan, to strategize. If ThunderPlague is to be defeated to prevent a decade of dominance, it will not be done lying down, they wouldn't want you too anyways. Where's the fun in that? Although it feels as though something is missing…

**-X-**

Edmund rushed out of his bed, nearly falling over hearing the rough, rushed pounding of his door in the dead of night. It was a few days before school started, who the heck in their right mind was up this early. The knocks were getting more frantic, more rapid, and possibly more violent. That left few in Edmund's mind who would bother him at this hour. And unless the ThunderPlague dorm is burning down, it really only left one.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," he told the person on the opposite side, nearly tripping over his PokeBall in the process, he really should have cleaned up the room. He opened the door trying to ignore the bright searing pain of the incandescent bulb littering the hallways. When his eyes came too, he noticed a familiar bun of golden hair. "Marie, what do you want? It's like three in the morning."

"Why aren't you on the top floor?" His ears worked perfectly, at this time he was cursing it, as Marie grabbed him by the arm and started to pull him out of his room. He noticed her Electivire was outside next to her on the wall. Energetic as always it seems.

"Umm," he replied, pulling his arm back, "because I'm not a part of the King's Cup, top floor is for the official player's only. I'd say I'd be your Joker but with it not being an official player I can't-" Edmund stopped as an envelope was shoved in his face.

"I knew you didn't see the announcement this morning," she said as she scolded him pushing the envelope into his arms.

"So you had to tell me at this hour?" Edmund's eyes rolled as he reluctantly opened the envelope with the official seal of Argent Academy pressed into wax.

_"To the various individuals chosen to be the unofficial 'Joker' players, we have made a change this year. We, the school faculty, have decided to formally recognize-"_

"No!" Edmund yelled as he threw the letter back at her, beginning to swing the door closed,"I refuse!"

"It ain't up to you, not anymore," Marie shook her head, "Electivire pick him up, we'll get his stuff later."

The large yellow Pokemon moved toward Edmund who backed off, "Don't make me." Whatever threat Edmund posed, Electivire gave little care as it picked him up by Edmund's waist as he reached for his PokeBall down below. "Dhelmise get out here!" But alas, he couldn't reach it as it was picked up by Marie.

"We'll talk more about this when you get some sleep on the top floor," she smiled as Electivire began to walk out with Edmund frantically trying to maneuver around Electivire's grip. Eventually he got shocked for his trouble and was rendered unconscious on the third stairwell. "Edmund Perish," Marie said to herself, "official Joker of ThunderPlague." She couldn't help but giggle at the title.

"Let the games begin."

**-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-**

**Well there is the prologue, an info dump but it was needed. The Form will be posted below and on my personal profile, along with that will be a list of the available position. Will tell you right now, PM only, no characters will be looked at from the review section.**

A Game of Kings SYOC Form (Erase any notes or parentheses from this if you copy paste this form)

Name:

Gender:

Age:(14-18)

Dorm:

Role/Position (King, Queen, Infiltrator, Defender, Pawn, Joker):

Year (14/15-1st Year, 15/16-2nd year, 16/17-3rd Year, 17/18-4th Year):

Returning to the King's Cup or a Newcomer? (Pawns are 1st Year, Defenders and Infiltrators are 2nd or above, Queens can only be 3rd years, Kings can be only be 4th years. Jokers can be of any):

Appearance (Includes physical, build, hair color, eyes. Includes accessories for their uniform and perhaps any alterations to uniforms. I'm not going to limit certain possibilities of hair color or eye color, we're treating this anime-esque. There will be limits, so no rainbow hair, but colors like red, purple, blue, etc are fine):

Background: (Doesn't need to be a life story, if your character is a returning/not a 1st year tell me what they were doing in the previous years. Also give me an idea of why your character was chosen)

Personality: (I would like a nice diverse cast, now I say this with 30 character slots, beggars can't be choosers. Just keep the edginess turned down a little, we all can't be edgelords.)

Romance (Optional) (What traits, what sexuality, etc.):

Likes: (Not limited to personality; can be material objects, hobbies, foods, etc.)

Dislikes: (Same as Likes, try to have a nice 1:1 ratio between the two)

Anything Else/Extra Information: (optional)

-Pokemon-

Rules:

_**YOU CAN ONLY HAVE 1 POKEMON**_

1\. For Pokemon your character will be immediately thrown out if your character has any of the following: any legendaries/mythic/whatever the hell they call them now, Lucario/Riolu, Zoroark/Zorua, specifically Gardevoir, and the Pikachu line. I understand if these are among your favorite Pokemon, and I do apologize, but there are over 800 to choose from, surely there is another Pokemon you love.

2\. Forms such as Alolan and Galarian forms are okay, the reason you see no Galarian Pokemon in the characters I've created is because this was written several months before posting Sword and Shield were released.

3\. There are going to be no duplicates, now I know that this issue may arise, if it does I will contact the author that got to me second and ask them to switch. At that point I will have already accepted both of your characters, so I will reserve your spot until you get back to me. There is a time limit on these, you will know if this should ever arise.

4\. As you may have noticed, you do not have to use a fully evolved Pokemon, however keep in mind you're position and Pokemon's power levels should be indicative of one another. I don't want to see a King or Queen with a Larvitar or some crap. For other positions it's not a hard rule, but keep it mind please

5\. Your Pokemon does not need to match your role, if you're an Infiltrator you don't need a quick, speedy Pokemon, a Defender doesn't need a super tanky one either.

Species:

Nickname: (Optional)

Gender:

Ability:

Basic Personality Traits:

Typical Moves used in battle (Moves by TMs are not banned but limit them please):

Battle Strategy:

Final Remarks

1\. Appearance, Personality, and Background will be the big three components I judge your character on. Put your focus into those three things and craft a character with that in mind and I may be willing to overlook some things that if you're character didn't have those three done well would get them denied. I want a good amount of information, if it takes you some time to do it, that's fine. Give me a character that is well than rush something out.

2\. While mentioned before that I don't want twenty thousand edgelords, I do want a full range of characters. Can we have one or two… maybe, just follow Note #1 and you'll be good. Make a character who is loving and nurturing, make a character who is vile and venomous.

3\. Once a character is submitted to me, that's all after that. You will have no say or influence on my decision. Now, that does not mean I am not willing to work with you. If I think we can iron out a few details, change some things around a little, then I will try to make it a priority before accepting other characters so I can fairly compare them.

4\. PM only, no characters will be taken from the review section.

5\. I'm gonna say one character per author, but that may change overtime, they're are a limited number of spots available (only 30) so I would like as many participants as possible.

6\. When submitting please title your PM as King's Cup SYOC- *Character Name*. For example, if I were to do it would go like this: King's Cup SYOC-Edmund Perish. Anything not typed up will not be looked at.

**_Above all, have fun with this. Don't stress about it._**


	2. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hello there ladies and gentlemen, well first let me say thank you to everyone who has submitted a character. I've gotten a lot, like...a lot. There aren't many left and they are sort of first come first served. Please go to my profile page to see the list of available positions.**

**-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-**

Chapter 1: Welcome to Argent

Saki's neck hurt, like a lot, and the rocking of the boat did not do much to help her efforts from keeping her eyes down to the floor. Her hands had not left each other since the boat left the port, yes even when she slept in her private room her hands kept themselves clenched together. Like a Clamperl suddenly touched they snapped together and never let go. The boat ride had been long with no one to talk to, it would have been longer if she did in her mind. She didn't know these people, and she wasn't legally required to meet these people, so what did she have to lose by not talking to them? Yes, that was the logic she chose to go by.

Another bump in the waves, they were getting worse and more frequent, this was the last day of the trip, even though she sat on the wall with only a small window to see out of she knew they were close. From what little she knew about Argent was that the currents mixed and mashed together before you got there making the equivalent of the worst airline turbulence you could have felt. The only respite you had was knowing that if you threw up you could aim for the ocean, or at least they'll dispose of it in the ocean. From the brochures and pictures the campus looked beautiful, almost gorgeous but this current trip seemed like one of those surprise payments from a subscription you didn't know you signed up for. Someone had to pay. Other students, from the few fractions of a second she spared to look up were faring much better, talking amongst other people.

You could tell who was who by the color of their uniform. The plaid pattern on the girl's skirt or the same style pattern on the guy's tie. The uniform jackets were also coordinated too. The main color was generally a darker color representing one element of the dorm they were a member of, the trimmings a lighter color, and then certain pieces the lightest. As a member of ThunderPlague, Saki's jacket was a deep, almost black like, purple, the edges and trimming were a lighter purple like a lush flower, with the buttons being an off yellow. All to match with her dorm's associated elements of ghost, poison, and electric. The deep purple and the darker purple served as the basis for her plaid skirt. There were other students with brown, red, blue, and green colored clothing making a real rainbow of people. She saw some wearing the same colors and thought it might be a good idea to go and meet her fellow dorm mates, but that meant actually having to talk to people. Instead she stood up, her hands came apart to brush one side of her short brunette hair out of her eye, the other side held back by a red hair clip. Without thinking she turned towards the cabins and made for her room, she was going to rest for the last few hours of the voyage, no doubt she would need her rest when she got to campus. The bed was so soft, so warm, on the nightstand was a pokeball containing her trusty partner. And in the drawer hidden from her view was an armband to go over her sleeve. Written in large yellow letters was the word "Pawn" with a purple image of the chess piece behind it. When she remembered it a part of her whined into her pillow that she fell face first into.

"Why me?" she said with a muffled cry before drifting to sleep.

**-A few weeks ago-**

Saki left the exam room feeling like her soul had been sucked out of her, in all honesty it could have. Her hand had a massive cramp in it, her brain had gone out for vacation halfway through the exam. She slouched out as she walked in the white halls of the public facility Argent Academy was using for their admission's test. It was quiet, she wasn't the last one done, but nowhere near the first, so the amount of people still taking the exam was small and left the building fairly empty. Before the exam portion was a practical portion, in layman's term a battle, they did it in two shifts and the battle portion was one she was much more confident in. That proctor didn't stand much of a chance, it felt a little too easy and she was surprised by how some people failed it. Failing one portion wasn't the be all end all though, depending on how people do on both portions would decide if you got into the school, which is why she prayed to Arceus that she got a good score.

"Miss Suzuki?"

Saki jumped at least a good four inches in the air hearing her name called out behind her. She turned to a man slightly older than her. Stuck in that gap between middle age and suffering a midlife crisis, but nowhere near the carefree nature of someone fresh out of college. A little bit of stubble on his chin, shaggy black hair a necktie around his black collared shirt but it only fit loosely around his neck. A little pale, his face a little sunken but his smile was lively.

"Uhhh," she quietly uttered while looking him up and down, "yes?"

"Hi, I'm Mr. Morris, would you please come with me?" He asked, motioning his way opposite of the exit, if anything it was going back to the battle arenas.

"Am I in trouble?" She said uneasily.

"Please just come with me," he hadn't said no, but he didn't necessarily say yes. Regardless she went with him, he was an official at Argent Academy after all. Her suspicion that she was returning to the battle arena would prove correct as the familiar doors and signs directing students to follow were seen once again.

Unlike last time she was here, probably about three hours ago, the battle arenas were now sectioned off by solid walls. Only a portion of the seats the potential students sat in were now available. She hadn't realized some of the applicants had been watching, what if she did something embarrassing? What if she sounded weird? Were they gonna parade her round now as a failure? When the light of the manufactured bulb passed over her she noticed that now there were no applicants in the seats. Now in place of them were much older people, faculty probably, and though they were hard to make out a few students. All but one seemed unenthused to be there, emotionless frowns and dead stares as the faculty members began to look down and scribble on notepads. The one girl who looked happy to see Saki waved, she had bright golden hair and a warming smile. Nervously she flashed a smile and waved back. Morris stepped in front of her.

"Miss Suzuki, actually, you know what I'm gonna call you Saki," he said to himself rubbing his chin, "Saki we decided we needed some additional information on your battling prowess. Can you do one more battle for us?"

"If I lose do I fail the admission process?" She asked hesitantly.

Morris looked back, and slightly chuckled, "Fight like it is."

With the ambiguity she rushed towards her end of the battle arena, stairs led to a platform before the solid rock field. On the far side, a man in a blue polo shirt walked to his platform. A proctor for the exam, he would use a pre-administered Pokemon for the test. There would be a multitude of Pokemon to choose from so she was in the dark of what her opponent would be. They knew what she would be using as well, this was going to be an uphill battle. She reached to her bag and gripped her pokeball.

"_It's go time,"_ she told herself, if she failed this then she her hopes of going to Argent would fizzle out here. There was to be no failure.

"Dusclops!" She shouted, "Let's go!"

From the white flash of the pokeball came the hulking grey mass. It's single red eye staring forward. It's hands slowly twitching, as if playing a deathly tune on an invisible piano. "Duuuuussss," it slowly drawled out.

The proctor reached for his belt and tossed out the ball, "Go, Vileplume!"

The short, blue grass and poison pokemon appeared, the immense weight of the flower petals on its head bopped and bounced as it moved back and forth, "Vile!" It cried out.

Morrison who had walked to the middle of the arena raised a hand, "The battle will continue until one is unable to continue. Am I understood?" They both nodded, "Alright then, let the battle commence!"

Immediately, Saki went to work, "Dusclops, Shadow Sneak!"

Following her commands, Dusclops took one or two steps onto the rocky and uneven terrain before its body slowly dipped beneath. It almost looked like the ghost pokemon collapsed in on itself or a building demolished from the inside. The black shadow that remained sped towards the opposing combatant much faster than Dusclops could have ever done on land.

"Vileplume, Stun Spore!" Replying with its own cries, Vileplume began to spray a green powder into the air, but strangely enough it didn't shoot it out like most pokemon did, instead it hung in the immediate air.

By the time the two met the grey ghost jumped from its own shadow and slammed its body into the red and blue flower. Green powder flying into the air and spreading onto Dusclops. It didn't pay much as it was only a little bit, it tingled but that was really about it.

"Now that you're in close use Ice Punch!" Saki ordered.

"Dus!" With a cry it reeled one fist back, growing colder and colder as the air became visible around it. The grey knuckles were swallowed with an ice like blue and white. The fist that was reeled back then slammed into the cheek of the Vileplume. More dust gathering onto Dusclops' body, then the second fist reeled back and did the same as the first.

"Vie!Vie!Vie!Vie!" Back and forth Vileplume took the assault, each frozen fist alternating which cheek was getting licked. Each step backward followed by a poof of green particles like slamming down a dusty book.

"_This is too easy," _Saki thought to herself, then with another poof of green Stun Spore her eyes widened. Dusclops had threw one more Ice Punch, this one aimed at the center of Vileplume's face and with it the largest explosion of Stun Spore flew right into Dusclops' face. The energy felt sapped, like a cage had been placed around it, like vines were constricting its every move, like lightning currents ran across its body. "_The Vileplume wouldn't be affected by its own Stun Spore so it applied it to its body by letting it fall and fly onto Dusclops. Now he's a sitting Ducklett." _She had to figure a way out of this fast.

"Vileplume use Giga Drain!" The proctor called out.

"Vile!" With Vileplume's arms raised Dusclops stuck in stride was surrounded by a green energy. With a sudden cry Dusclops felt his energy sapped away from him, sparkles of green orbs flashed from his body and went straight to Vileplume. The red bruises from the frozen punches went away as Vileplume felt the energy from it's attack restore it to better health.

"Dusclops use Shadow Punch!" Saki cried out. Slowly moving forward, her partner reached towards Vileplume with a black colored fist.

"Evade! Jump back and prepare for Solar Beam!" The healthy grass type jumped back far away from Dusclops' immediate range, plus with it being paralyzed by the Stun Spore it was moving much slower. If the ghost type agitated the spores it would send it in a fit of paralysis and leave it motionless. From the center of the flower on Vileplume's head began to shine a bright yellow light, the rays of the sun billowing in like a reverse smoke stack or chimney. Still the ghost type was moving it's fist out, but it was moving so slow that it would never reach like that, and walking towards Vileplume was out of the question. If Dusclops had trouble with its fists, then legs would most assuredly be out of the question.

"Now go, use Solar Beam!"

"VILE!" The Vileplume yelled and ducked it's head so it could point at its target. The glowing flower bud erupted like a volcano after years of dormancy, yellow light swallowing its body. The beam that shot out aimed directly towards Dusclops looked as if it was going to erase it from the battlefield entirely. But still its fist moved toward as it was swallowed by the light.

"Dusclops!" Saki yelled. For the better part of ten seconds the light swirled and twisted at her pokemon. When the light died down, when it was all said and done Vileplume heaved heavy breaths, the flower head flapping about like Bunnelby ears.

Yet Dusclops still stood tall, virtually untouched minus the mark to his left shoulder. Faculty, students, and proctor alike were surprised by this turn of events. The faculty began to scribble down more notes as Morrison chuckled to himself, realizing what happened. He noticed it when the rubble kicked up by Solar Beam was slightly askew from Dusclops and not in the same trajectory as Dusclops. "_She must have known that Dusclops wouldn't be able to reach Vileplume from that far. So she used the Shadow Punch to ride along the shadow of the beam to send its fist in. Must have jerked Vileplume enough to change the angle of the attack and avoid the majority of it. Smart kid."_

The proctor, huffed, "Alright fine, Vileplume, get in close and use Sleep Powder, we'll try again with Solar Beam when they can't wake up."

"Vile!" The red flower blitzed over to Dusclops with each shake of the spotted foliage kicking up a different green powder.

"_They're gonna get in close when Dusclops can't avoid it for a guaranteed hit." _She thought and the gear began to turn immediately. "That won't work on us twice!" She turned to her partner, "Dusclops use Will-O-Wisp!"

"Dusss" Moving his hands in a circular pattern Dusclops created a blue orb of fire between his grey hands. It was a slow process and the Vileplume was approaching a point blank shot.

"_If you can't miss, neither can I!" _She smiled, "Shoot it now!"

"Release the spores!" He yelled at the same time.

"Duss/Vile!" Both pokemon yelled at the same time and released their respective moves.

As the spores began to travel towards Dusclops they were met by the burning grasps of the Will-O-Wisps. Upon contact the wisps ignited and burned the immediate air, like mini explosions or fireworks the fire burnt through the Sleep Powder. It was so powerful that the wisps ripped through the powder and straight to Vileplume, leaving singe marks. However it didn't stop their as the ignition of the Sleep Powder spread towards Dusclops where his body was still covered in the Stun Spore. The ripples of the ignition touched upon Dusclops' body and traveled over to ignite the Stun Spore. Feeling returned, grey fist clenched and Dusclops stood tall and moved as if freed from chains.

"Well glad that gamble took off," Saki said to herself, "now that he's close take him out with Fire Punch!"

"Sleep Powder again!" The Proctor yelled in panic.

Once again Dusclops reeled back its fist and red flames covered swallowed grey fingers, its other soon followed and the onslaught repeated like before. Once the first punch connected, green powder flew in the air, only this time the flames ignited them and they were essentially vaporized. With the burn caused by the Will-O-Wisp as well it only began to pile on for the grass type. Eventually Dsuclops started to press the advantage and pushed Vileplume back again, pummeling its face like last time.

"Finish 'em off Dusclops!"

"Dusclops!" It yelled and extinguishing one fist, Gripping the flower head of Vileplume and lifted it up slightly so it could see its face, Dusclops raised its head up while preparing its last attack. With a might cry it slammed Vileplume square in the face with the flaming fist and releasing its grip. The momentum carried Vileplume to the ground where it fell with a hearty thud.

Morrison looked over and when the dust died down he smiled to himself and raised his arm. "Vileplume is unable to battle, the winner of the match is Saki Suzuki!"

"Yeah!" She ran up to Dusclops and gave him a hug, "We get to stay in school!"

As she cheered she didn't notice Mr. Morrison walk up, along with that one student who had waved at her. "Why would you not stay in school?" The teacher asked.

She jumped once again, "You said I was gonna get kicked out if I didn't win."

"No, I said fight like you wouldn't be accepted. Not like you were gonna be, come one keep up kid," his smile broke out into laughter when he saw the pout on her face. "Listen, I have someone I need to introduce to you," he said once he got done, he moved to the side to give way for the obvious upperclassmen with the golden hair up in a bud which was off to the side.

"Saki was it?" She greeted with a small smile and outstretched hand, "I'm Marie Royal and I'm the leader of ThunderPlague, the dorm you'll be staying in."

Saki took the hand and shook it, "Um, pleasure to meet you, what can I do for you?"

While still holding her hand, Marie took out a deep purple colored armband and quicker than Saki could have seen it was wrapped around her sleeve. "Congratulations, you're my Pawn for the King's Cup"

Utterly confused about what just happened and what Marie just said all Saki could manage was a "Bwuh?"

"I know you'll have questions, but don't worry, once you get to the dorm I promise to tell you everything," Marie released her hand and her and Morrison walked away, "See you at school!"

Still there, hand still frozen in place, eyes fixed forward still unsure about what happened. She opened her mouth again, "Bwuh?

Compared to that battle earlier this was not her greatest moment.

**-Present Day-**

Marie Royal brushed her golden hair, at full length it dipped below her shoulder but not much farther. She hummed some tune that she really didn't remember, just idly passing time. "They should be here soon," she cooed.

"Is there a problem?" She smiled as she heard Edmund's voice from behind her. He had woken a while ago, still in a fit mind you, but eventually he calmed down. He leaned on the doorway, on the arm that didn't have an armband on it. On his was a jester like edifice colored purple, outlined in yellow on the almost black background. He was the official Jester of ThunderPlague now.

"Oh no problem," she put the brush down and shook her hair, she gripped her hair and turned to him, "mind giving me a hand?"

"Why do I even bother?" He asked quietly before walking over and fidgeting with her hair, putting it in that bun off to the side that she always liked. It had been him that taught her to do it, she was able to, but Edmund always did it perfectly.

"The new students are arriving today, the game will begin soon," she said as Edmund got finished, "you excited?"

The face on Edmund said otherwise, "Oh yes, I am quite thrilled."

"Now, now Eddy," a nickname she had given him, "don't be like that."

The senior huffed, "I assume you sent Cortez already to pick up the first years."

"And Ashlyn," Marie followed up walking over and grabbing her own armband. A purple and yellow crown that was blocky in design.

"And Ashlyn?"

"She wanted to go down," the King replied, "something about wanting to 'get on good terms with the first years'."

"I see," he said in turn.

"She wants to make a good impression."

"Or find a first year to snuggle with."

"Edmund," she scolded, "be nice, that's your teammate."

"I'm not trying to be mean, better them instead of me, I would gladly pat one of them kids on the back."

"Whatever you say, c'mon, we need to prepare for the banquet later," Marie walked across the hall and pushed the button calling for the elevator.

"Sure thing your majesty," Edmund sauntered about, "by the way, have you seen Dustin lately?"

"No, I haven't why?" Marie replied getting into the elevator with Edmund.

"No, reason, just thinking I'm glad I stayed behind."

Up through the bog, up the hill, to the main road, down towards the northwestern end of the island Argent Academy was situated in lay the docks. At the docks Saki leapt off the boat as one of the last people, keeping out of people's vision. She couldn't see much being shorter than most, she was only a bit over five feet. She could hear a booming, several booming voices in fact over the chatter of the other first years.

"ThunderPlague! ThunderPlague!" She could hear the shouting coming from a ways away, distinct from a heavy accent. She made it up to a mass of people who all shared her colored uniform. Two students were elevated above the rest, obviously the leaders, and the fact that the one shouting was standing there. The man yelling was of middling height, short black hair over his almost caramel colored skin. Brown eyes searched over the crowd as people stopped filtering in. Meaty hands clapped together like thunder. "Well, I guess this everyone," he said with a thick accent in his voice that dropped certain words, "my name Cortez, I am Defender for the ThunderPlague dorm. I look forward to helping you throughout this school year. And this here is is or Queen, Lady Ashlyn Blackburn."

To describe Ashlyn in a single word it would be mature. She was gorgeous, deep black hair that flowed like a river at the crux of midnight, her skin ivory white like a Mamoswine's tusks. Her uniform fit her body snug and while looking, Saki felt her arms wrap around herself in a sense of retreating from the view. Her smile looked deadly and alluring at the same time. "Hello boys and girls," she greeted with a voice not at all like she had been expecting. A smooth, seductive tone perhaps, but this was more natural and normal of a girl still in her teenage years. Perhaps Saki was overthinking this. "We'll be taking you to the ThunderPlague dorm, please stay close, we don't want an incident like last year."

"What happened last year?" Someone called out from the crowd.

"Don't know, we never found him," Ashlyn replied, the small grin on her face went unnoticed by many as she quickly turned around, her long black hair whipping around her body.

"Before that though," Cortez spoke, silencing some of the whispering among students, "where is Miss Saki Suzuki?"

Saki immediately looked towards the ground on reaction, but nervously, among the silent mutterings of confusion she raised her head up and slowly raised her hand. "H-here."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, congratulations on your achievement. I would like you to join me and Madam Blackburn at the front. We would like to get to know our teammate more."

Looking down once again she walked forward, trying to ignore a few stares, then came the claps. If before people were unsure, when they saw the Pawn armband their questions were answered. It was somewhat relieving to know that she had most of the support of her fellow freshman class. With a breath she met Cortez and Ashlyn's face, "Where to?"

"We have a bit of a walk before we get to the docks to cross the bog. It'll get dark soon," Cortez replied looking at the setting sun in the distance. "So let's get a move on."

The walk towards the dock was uneventful, they went around the main center of campus and instead went through backroads that both Cortez and Anshlyn listed off as ways to get to classes faster. Saki listened intently, but at no point during this time did the two talk to her directly. Then they arrived at the bog when the concrete of the school grounds slowly became grass, which turned to lush overgrowth. The trees tilted, swayed, drooped, and spread across the dirt into a large lake like bog that swallowed any light that entered it. Algae and green pond scum littered and danced on the water surface. A dock barely hanging on to its hinges creaked and groaned with one boat large enough for the freshman class and then some.

"Okay, everybody, get on the boat, we'll be at the dorm shortly," Cortez said. Ashlyn and Saki got on first while Cortez stayed behind to make sure everyone got on. When the last of the students got on he grabbed the rope keeping the boat anchored to the dock and untied it. He hopped on and told the driver to head off. He met up with Ashlyn and Saki near the front of the boat. "Well how is our Pawn doing this evening?" He leaned on the railing of the boat as it bopped in the water.

"Umm, okay," she said holding one side of her back from the wind.

"Don't be so nervous," Ashlyn said holding her hair back just like Saki, "we aren't going to eat ya."

"Sorry," she panicked and looked down again.

"Saw the recording of you taking down that Vileplume from the entrance exams, very impressive. I like a little fighter," Ashlyn smiled at her achieving the opposite of easing her nerves.

"Your grades however could use a little more work," Cortez said in response.

She hadn't even gotten to see her test scores, "Where they that bad?"

"They weren't bad, but they uh…." he paused, "I definitely can see room for improvement."

"Thanks," Saki replied with a twinge of snark.

"Oh don't worry about Julio, he looks out for everybody," Ashlyn said hugging him tightly and giggling while shaking him back and forth.

"I thought I told you to stop doing that?" Cortez, and Saki presumed Julio was his actual name, replied looking unamused by her antics.

"And when has that ever stopped me?"

"_Sweet Arceus they're nuts,"_ Saki thought to herself. The boat once again dipped in the waves and Saki turned her attention to the mess of drooping foliage the came and passed by.

Then a scream ripped through the air. All three of them stopped what they were doing and immediately turned towards the back of the boat where it came from. Cortez was first as he sprinted back followed by the other two. When they arrived, what they saw was one girl practically hyperventilating and some amorphous blob on the floor appearing to be laughing. It looked like some sad costume made from the moss hanging off the trees of the bog to make it look like some kind of monster.

"Oh god, oh good god that never was a riot. You should have seen the look on your face. Ah, hahahahah," the monster said with an all too human voice.

Cortez had a look of near murder on his face, "Dustin, what are you doing here?"

The monster, or in this case Dustin looked up from the deck of the ship, his breathing slowed down, "Ah my partner in crime Cortez, well I decided to come and help cheer up the mood."

"Take off that ridiculous costume, now," Cortez said.

"Alright, alright, all business make Julio a very dull boy I guess," Reaching above his head the costume of moss was thrown off and into the water revealing Dustin. "Pleasure to meet you fresh meat," he said to the students who he scared half to death, "name's Dustin Nelson, I'm your Infiltrator." Dustin's face, despite the green of the moss costume, was fairly clean, his hair shaved down the sides and in the middle it was spiked up. A bright blonde hair color to contrast from his striking green eyes. If Ashlyn's smile was calm and calculated, Dustin's was quite the opposite with a crooked smile and wild eyes. Unlike Cortez, Ashlyn, and everybody on the ship Dustin didn't have the jacket for his uniform, leaving him in just the white dress shirt, patterned tie and black slacks the guys had to wear. His face turned to Saki who looked away upon reaction, trying to avoid eye contact with the devil, or at least the devil's step-son twice removed by marriage.

"You must be the top of the fresh meat," he announced and took her hand, "we're gonna have a great time working together, I will teach you all the ins and outs of this game kid. Stick with me and you won't regret it."

"As much as I would like to see that happen," Cortez stepped in, thankful on her part, "we will be approaching the dorm soon. If you're here then I assume preparation have been completed for the banquet?"

"Don't know, left a little after you did," Dustin shrugged, "Perish and Marie had it all figured out."

Cortez blinked, blinked again, and did it once more. Through his nose he inhaled sharply, "I hope you get scolded by Marie for this."

"Hey, I'm a favorite of hers," Dustin laughed off, "now come on we should be approaching the dorm." He waved the students to come with him as from the darkness came lampposts loosely hanging off the trees and ground creating an eerie atmosphere. Traversing through the swamp more and more lights were placed around until they came to an old looking manor. The pink paint curled upwards at the edges and siding of the walls from the humidity and moisture of the air. The roof and siding of large manor was purple mirroring the one on their uniforms. As they got closer Saki didn't realize just how big the mansion was, it just went up and up it felt like. Just like the dock before entering the bog, this one was hanging on by mainly hopes and dreams, although there were two more just like it, each with their own large boats to traverse the waters.

This time Dustin and Cortez tied off the vessel before any of the students got off, "Please follow me," Ashlyn said as she stepped off the ship onto the dock leading to ThunderPlague Manor. Saki stuck close to her as they walked towards the door. On top of the entryway seemed to be an emblem or crest. A skull and crossbones, except the bones beneath the skull had been replaced by two lightning bolts. The solid wood door swung open as Ashlyn used both her hands to open them. "Marie, we're back!" She yelled.

The inside was a stark contrast to what Saki had been suspecting, bright lights, red carpeting, walls painted yellow and red. Not at all like the classic haunted house Saki envisioned, or maybe a murder pit or something. There were a few other students in the foyer by the wooden desk, to which Ashlyn walked to when she got no reply. Happily she walked back to the group, "Leave your stuff here, the staff will send it to your rooms. Come with me to the main hall please."

Again they began to walk farther into the dorm down a larger hallway to giant doors towering over the like of Saki. "Julio dear, Dustin, would you do the honors," with a nod and a smile the two walked forward and stood ready at the doors. "As the Queen for ThunderPlague Dorm in this year's King's Cup, allow me to be the first to welcome you to ThunderPlague."

The doors swung open to a massive hall filled with numerous round tables filled with returning students. Food and drinks abounded on their plates as they all took a break from eating to welcome in the new arrivals. As they all walked in Saki noticed the same girl from before at the match she did versus the Vileplume, Marie Royal the King of ThunderPlague with a smile on her face. At her table lay several empty seats each with a special emblem. One of a crown that she stood at, one was a pawn chess piece that she assumed was hers, a shield, some kind of face obscured by a cloth which reminded her of a ninja, a different kind of crown that was smaller and more thin, and the last of a playing card she couldn't make out. Marie pointed at Saki and motioned her finger to come over while the other students filtered in. Dustin, Cortez, and Ashlyn followed suit and met up with Marie.

"Good to see you again Saki, how was the trip?"

"Umm," she looked around the table, "a little bumpy."

"Ah, yeah I remember that first time," Dustin shook his head, "it was an absolute nightmare."

"Still get goosebumps from seeing that ship," Cortez added.

"Well now that you're all here, I'll grab the mic and we can get this thing started," Marie ran off. She came back soon with a microphone in hand, "Attention everyone," she loudly said into the mic catching everyone's attention, "as many of you are aware, Argent Academy is home to the King's Cup. And ThunderPlague has won for the last nine years and we're planning on going for the record folks, we're aiming for the decade." Cheers, claps, and whistles ensued. "So without further ado here are our players for this year. Our Queen is the lovely Ashlyn Blackburn," many, many, almost too many wolf whistles came from the crowd as she smiled and waved to them. "Our Defender is Julio Cortez and our Infiltrator is Dustin Nelson," cheers and claps a bit more sparse. "For our pawn we have Saki Suzuki," when Marie pointed at the freshman she was caught off guard by the amount of cheers she got and the amount of 'you got this" from the crowd. Ashlyn nudged her side and gave a knowing smile and a wink, and again she felt like retreating into herself.

"As you may have heard returning students, there has been a slight change in this year's King's Cup. They have added a new player to the roster," whispers and hushed questions sprang from the tables like mad, "don't worry it isn't anything too worrisome. The new addition is the Joker, you may have remembered this was the unofficial substitute but now it has been made an official player. And the very first Joker of ThunderPlague is…." she paused for dramatic effect, "Edmund Perish!" When nothing happened she realized that Edmund was not in the immediate group she looked around the room, "Where is Edmund?"

Silverware and plate fell upon each other as someone raised their arms and yelled, "He's right here!"

This was followed by a "Goddammit Gordon!"

Marie made an angry pouty face with puffed cheeks, "Edmund get over here!"

"You can't make me!" He replied from the sea of people.

Slightly affronted she put her hand on her hip and looked in his general direction, "Do I need to get Electivire again?"

Immediately he shot straight, brown curly hair bounced up, "Lead the way your majesty!" He yelled before gunning it over to the group. A fit of laughter broke out among the other students. When he met up with the group Marie gave him a pout and huffed.

"And I Marie Royal will be your King," thunderous applause and cheers, more so than any other of the players announced previously. "We will not disappoint you!" The cheers reached new heights and even Saki stood proud with a small smile as the sea of people applauded and clapped their team poised to win for a tenth year in a row.

**-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-**

**This chapter was written before the initial prologue, so when everyone and their mother was saying "pls put in some actual story bits" I just sat here thinking: wait a week. Anyways, that's also why none of the submitted characters made an appearance this chapter, that will change next chapter. Again, thank you for everyone has submitted and been accepted. At this point there are only 4 spots remaining. So hurry.**


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